As artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes nearly every sector — from health and agriculture to journalism and the arts — demand for graduates who understand its foundations and implications is rapidly growing.
Yet, traditional AI coursework often requires advanced programming skills or a computer science background.
To address this challenge, researchers in the Stanley and Karen Pigman College of Engineering at the University of Kentucky are leading a multi-institutional effort to make AI education accessible to all undergraduates — regardless of major or prior experience.
A $1.85 million collaborative award from the National Science Foundation(NSF) to UK, Bluegrass Community and Technical College, Berea College and Northeastern Illinois University supports the project, “Collaborative Research: EducateAI: CUE-T: Designing Artificial Intelligence Curricula for All Undergrads.”
The project is led by:
“We’re exploring general principles for developing AI curriculum that can be used to provide AI education to all undergraduates,” Fei said. “It will not only cover how to use AI effectively and ethically — but also the fundamental principles of how AI systems work.”
Traditional AI courses often require substantial technical training, which can limit access for students in fields such as the humanities, arts and social sciences. Some institutions may also face barriers to expanding AI offerings due to limited faculty capacity and resources.
The project aims to reduce these barriers by designing interdisciplinary coursework — allowing students from all backgrounds to engage with AI technologies and develop the literacy demanded by industries worldwide.
“The certificate will include different tracks, so students with no technical or programming background can find a pathway to completion,” Fei said.
The UK-led team will develop a certificate program and modular course materials aligned with five guiding principles:
The initiative will also design and evaluate an undergraduate AI curriculum adaptable across a wide range of institutions — combining foundational technical skills with ethical perspectives and real-world, discipline-specific applications.
UK’s partner institutions provide critical perspective. Researchers will study how AI courses can be adapted to different institutional contexts without requiring extensive new resources or specialized computing infrastructure.
“Each institution brings a unique perspective on AI education — contributing to innovative approaches to curriculum development,” Fei continued. “This allows us to examine the applicability of guiding principles and explore how to adapt programs across institutions with varying student populations, resources and academic offerings.”
After initial development, the curriculum will expand to partner institutions, which will adapt and implement it as certificate programs, individual courses or modules within existing classes.
Beyond the classroom, the project aims to foster a more informed public conversation about AI. As AI systems become more common — from large language models to automation tools — broader public understanding is essential.
The team believes a more AI-literate society will be better equipped to evaluate the technology’s benefits and limitations and make informed decisions about its use.
The project also includes outreach efforts, such as summer camps for high school students. All curriculum materials developed through the grant will be made publicly available — allowing educators nationwide to adopt or adapt the resources.
“AI is such a transformative technology, and it has impacted every sector of our economy and changed the way we approach problems at work and in our daily lives,” Fei said. “Ultimately, we envision a future where AI education is no longer limited to engineers and computer scientists — but where students across disciplines graduate with the knowledge to help shape an increasingly AI-driven world.”
UK also recently announced the launch of CATS AI — an initiative designed to coordinate and advance artificial intelligence efforts and expertise across the UK campus and throughout the Commonwealth.
CATS (Commonwealth AI Transdisciplinary Strategy) AI will serve as a central hub to integrate AI activities across UK’s 17 colleges, libraries, research centers and institutes, as well as its academic and health care enterprises.
The initiative builds on a recent resolution by the UK Board of Trustees, charging the university to become Kentucky’s “partner of choice” for the responsible use and expansion of AI. CATS AI will leverage AI to advance UK’s mission of improving health and well-being through the Advancing Kentucky Together (AKT) Network.
You can learn more through the CATS AI website: akt.uky.edu/commonwealth-ai-transdisciplinary-strategy.
Research reported in this publication was supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation under Award No. 2434181. The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. National Science Foundation.
